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under the reign of Augustus .' The material ‘ chap.soul of the universe 5 might offend the pietythe Hebrews: but they applied the characterof the logos to the Jehovah of Moses and thepatriarchs ; and the son of God was introducedupon earth under a visible, and even human ap-pearance, to perform those familiar offices whichseem incompatible with the nature and attri-butes of the universal cause . 1

The eloquence of Plato , the name of Solo- ^ y e j, e ® ledmon, the authority of the school of Alexandria, apostleand the consent of the Jews and Greeks, wereinsufficient to establish the truth of a mysteri-ous doctrine, which might please, but couldnot satisfy, a rational mind. A prophet, orapostle, inspired by the deity, can alone exer-cise a lawful dominion over the faith of man-kind ; and the theology of Plato might have

r The platonism of Philo, which was famous to a proverb, is provedbeyond a doubt by Le Clerc (Epist. Crit. viii, p. 211-228). Basnage(Hist, des Jnifs, 1. iv, c. 5) has clearly ascertained, that the theologicalworks of Philo were composed before the death, and most probably be-fore the birth, of Christ. In such a time of darkness, the knowledgeof Philo is more astonishing than his errors. Bull, Defens. Fid. Nicen.s. i, c. 1, p. 12.

* Mens agitat molem, et magno se corpore miscet.

Besides this material soul, Cndworth has discovered (p. 562), in Ame-lins, Porphyry, Plotinus, and, as he thinks, in Plato himself, a superior,spiritual, vpercosmian soul of the universe. But this double soul isexploded by Brucker, Basnage, and Le Clerc, as an idle fancy of thelatter platonists.

' Petav. Dogmata Theologica, tom. ii, 1. viii, c. 2, p. 791. Bull, De-fens. Fid. Nicen. s. i, c. 1. p. 8-13. This notion, till it was abused bythe arians, was freely adopted in the Christian theology. Tertullian (adv. Praxeam, e. 16) has a remarkable and dangerous passage. Aftercontrasting, with indiscreet wit, the nature of God , and the actions ofJehovah, he concludes : Scilicet tit haec de iilio Dei non credendafuisse, si non scripta esseut ; fortasse non credenda de patre licettcripta.